Thatchers scores top rating for Christmas ad

Created at Aardman's Bristol studios, just over 20 miles from Myrtle Farm, the film involved hundreds of hours of craftsmanship, including bespoke costumes and miniature sets recreating the snow-covered farm.

Thatchers' first Christmas television advert has achieved the maximum 5.9-Star rating in System1's Test Your Ad, placing the campaign among the top 1 percent of advertisements tested by the research company. Created by Aardman Animations in collaboration with creative and media agency Bray Leino, Saving Tasting Time also nearly doubles the average score for the Beer, Cider & FMBs category.

The campaign received an Exceptional Spike Rating of 1.37 and a Fluency Rating of 89, both above category averages. System1's research also found that 65 percent of viewers experienced happiness while watching the advert, with Uplifted and Excitement emerging as the most prominent emotional responses.

Thatchers Christmas campaign delivers strong emotional response

The advert follows Martin Thatcher, a fourth-generation cider maker, as heavy snowfall threatens to disrupt the team's weekly Friday cider tasting at Myrtle Farm in Somerset. With inspiration from Myrtle the dog, Martin takes to the skies in the company's hot air balloon to bring the team together.

The production combines traditional stop-motion animation and puppetry with CGI.

Aardman partnership brings Myrtle Farm to television

The campaign launched on Monday 2 November across ITV, Sky, Netflix and Channel 4. Its strong performance also builds on the brands' previous advertising work together. Thatchers' 2023 campaign scored 4.7 Stars in System1's testing, making it the most effective advertisement tested by the company for an independent beer or cider brand at the time.

Andrew Tindall, Chief Growth Officer, Advertising, System1: "Thatchers has made one of the best Christmas ads of the year, and it's their first ever Christmas ad. Saving Tasting Time scored 5.9 Stars, the maximum on our scale, putting it in the top 10 most emotional drinks ads we've tested in the past decade. Nearly two thirds of viewers left feeling happy, and nobody displayed a flicker of negativity.

"It's also proof that consistency compounds creativity; Thatchers partnership with Aardman, the setting at Myrtle Farm, its own people and Myrtle the dog, so every ad builds on the last. Their 2023 ad scored 4.7 Stars, which made it the most effective ad we'd ever tested for an independent beer or cider brand. The new advert has maxed out the scale."

Thatchers celebrates response to first Christmas advert

Martin Thatcher, fourth-generation cider maker, Thatchers Cider: "It's fantastic to see such a positive response to our first ever Christmas advert. Receiving the highest possible rating from System1 was wonderful news, and we're delighted that the results reflect the happiness we hoped the advert would bring".

"Our partnership with Aardman is built on a shared passion for craftsmanship and getting every detail just right, and it's been brilliant to bring Myrtle Farm and our all-important Friday 12:30 cider tasting to life with a little festive magic. We hope the advert brings a little extra Christmas cheer to everyone who watches it."

www.system1group.com

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